Gospel lesson of the week
The 9th Sunday after Pentecost

Matthew 14:13-21

After John the Baptist is murdered, Jesus desires a time of solitude. Still, his compassion for others will not allow him to dismiss those who need him, and he is moved to perform one of his greatest miracles, the “feeding of the 5,000.”

¹³Now when Jesus heard [about the beheading of John the Baptist], he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. ¹⁴When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. ¹⁵When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” ¹⁶Jesus said to them, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” ¹⁷They replied, “We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.” ¹⁸And he said, “Bring them here to me.” ¹⁹Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. ²⁰And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. ²¹And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Gospel Reflection Questions

1. Some believe the miracle was that, inspired by Jesus, people shared what they had.  Others believe the bread and fish was miraculously multiplied by God through Jesus.  What do you think?
2. Does it matter what sort of miracle this was, if Jesus inspired sharing or multiplied fish and bread?   (Or both?)
3. What does this miracle teach us about sharing today?
   
   

Prayer

Mt. Olive's online Bible Study is a weekly opportunity to reflect on
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